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UN Resolution 1701 is at the heart of the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire deal. What is it?As the clock ticks toward 2025, real estate experts are predicting a rise in home sales and a stabilization of home prices across the United States in the new year, while also warning about the persistent affordability challenge. Nationally, for 2025, NAR is forecasting 4.5 million existing home sales and a median existing-home price of $410,700. However, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun cautioned that housing affordability may still be an issue for first-time buyers. “We do have a housing crisis in affordability for renters who would like to buy a property,” he said. “Americans are still not moving, which is keeping inventory lower and prices higher.” There is still a significant disparity in net worth between homeowners and renters, with homeowners having an average net worth of $415,000 compared with just $10,000 for renters in 2024, according to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances. “Both 2023 and 2024 have had historically low home sales,” Yun said. Still, he said the “worst is over” and predicted existing home sales to increase from 7 percent to 12 percent in 2025 and 10–15 percent in 2026. New-construction home sales are expected to grow by 11 percent in 2025 and 8 percent in 2026. Nationally, the median sales price is expected to rise by 2 percent. Jessica Lutz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research, said high-income and high-equity homebuyers are winners in today’s market, with one in 10 purchasing a home with cash. “Many first-time buyers are using their inheritance, or others are using their savings from the ‘bank of mom and dad,’” she said. “But the prices are shutting out lots of people.” The new median age of the national first-time homebuyer has climbed to 38, and to 61 for repeat buyers. “Forty years ago, most first-time buyers were in their early 20s,” Lutz said. Fifty percent of those buyers are married, and 25 percent are single women. “We’re also seeing an all-time high of multigenerational buyers who are pooling their money to make a purchase,” she said. Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, also forecasted a hike in home sales for next year, but possibly at a lower rate of 1.5 percent. “It could be a slow climb out of this current situation, and I believe home prices will continue to go up, but at a slower pace,” she said. “Income gains, easing mortgage rates, and new construction will help with affordability, and I do expect rents to stay flat.” Yun also predicted that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates another four to six times in 2025, and forecasted the average mortgage interest at just above 6 percent in 2025. Jim Nabors, president of the National Association of Mortgage Bankers, agreed with Yun’s forecast. “We anticipate the Fed to drop rates another three-quarters of a quarter during 2025 if inflation stays stable,” he told The Epoch Times. “If you look at mortgage rates over the past 40 years, with the exception of the early 1980s and 2021, the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was between 6 percent and 8 percent.” Nabors noted that the housing market relies on more than just interest rates. “The need for housing is still increasing as 10 million millennials will be looking for homes over the next few years,” he said. “They are going to have to decide when they find a house they want—are they going to buy it now at whatever rates are available or sit on the sidelines waiting for rates to drop while house prices continue to rise?” The Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown region of Connecticut and the Boston-Cambridge-Newton areas of Massachusetts and New Hampshire were named next year’s Northeast hot spots. Jared Wilk, president of the Greater Boston Association of Realtors, told The Epoch Times that home prices remain high in Boston and its immediate suburbs, with a median single-family home price of $865,000. “I’m optimistic about rates coming down in 2025, but fearful that affordability is going to continue to be a challenge for first-time buyers,” he said. Wilk, a principal with the Shulkin Wilk Group at Compass in Wellesley, Massachusetts, noted that despite higher home prices, the region continues to be a major attraction because of its hospitals, universities, and technology companies. “There’s a furious demand for homes here, and as a result, we don’t see the prices easing very much,” he said. While new construction is more prevalent in the Boston suburbs, home prices still remain on the high end. Many of Wilk’s clients are people moving within the region—some desiring a closer location to Boston for employment with others seeking the outskirts of the suburbs for more affordable options. “We’re definitely seeing people pushing further north, west, and south of the city to places like Brookline, Newton, Concord, and Lexington,” he noted. “And most of these towns have their own character and a commuter rail line.” Sheryl Bowden, president of the Phoenix Association of Realtors, told The Epoch Times that she wasn’t surprised to see that the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler region of Arizona also made NAR’s list of Top 10 2025 markets. Plus, the area is more affordable than many Northeast locations, with a median single-family home price of $475,000. “We’re in the Sun Belt, and people like to come here for change of scenery—either to buy second homes or to relocate,” she said. “We do have hot summers, but we never have hurricanes, tornadoes, or nasty winter weather.” Bowden said inventory is beginning to pick up and that she expects more potential buyers to hit the market in January. “We also have major employers like Google and Amazon, along with some great universities, medical schools, and sports teams—all of which are attracting people to the area,” Bowden said. Many of her buyers are former Californians seeking more affordable housing options and often paying cash for homes. She also works with retirees moving from other parts of the country. A 40-year real estate veteran, Bowden works with Realty Executives in Phoenix, but also serves the nearby communities of Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, and Chandler. “We do see a lot of new construction in our area, but they’re not building it as fast as we’d like,” she said. “I think builders are becoming a bit more conservative now, constructing just a few homes to start before putting too much inventory out there.” While prices are lower here than in much of the United States, Bowden said it’s still a struggle for first-time buyers. “I have a son who’s 28 and a daughter who’s 25, and all of their friends want to buy homes but can’t afford it yet,” Bowden said. “A lot of young people are living at home with their parents to try to save up for a down payment. Typically, your total household income should be at around $100,000 to be able to buy a home, but the majority of young people are not making that much.” In nearby Scottsdale, the median price for a single-family home jumps to $1.1 million. Other regions in NAR’s Top 10 2025 hot market list include Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North and South Carolina; Greenville-Anderson, South Carolina; Grand Rapids-Kentwood, Michigan; Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Indiana; Kansas City, Missouri; Kansas City, Kansas; Knoxville, Tennessee; and San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas.
After his team's 102-89 home win on Wednesday night over Purdue Fort Wayne, Penn State coach Mike Rhoades challenged his team's fan base to show up and make more noise. "Sweat with us," he said at one point. At 5-0, the Nittany Lions haven't had to sweat much to get off to a fast start. They might not have to expend much perspiration to make it 6-0 on Monday when they meet Fordham in a semifinal matchup at the Sunshine Slam tournament in Daytona Beach, Fla. Penn State hasn't played a strong schedule so far, but the team has been impressive. It's averaging 98.2 points per game and 13.8 steals per game, both of which ranked second in Division I through Saturday's play. The Nittany Lions were seventh per kenpom.com in turnover rate, forcing 25.3 per 100 possessions. Point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. is leading the charge, scoring 16.4 points and dishing out 7.8 assists while chipping in 2.6 steals. Zach Hicks has nearly doubled his scoring average from 8.4 last season to 15.8 this season, while Northern Illinois transfer Yanic Konan Niederhauser has beefed up the interior, tallying 12.2 points and 7.2 rebounds. Meanwhile, Fordham (3-3) is coming off a 73-71 home loss Friday night against Drexel in New York. The Rams blew a seven-point lead early in the second half and missed a chance to force overtime when leading scorer Jackie Johnson III missed a layup as time expired. Johnson, a UNLV transfer, is averaging 19 points per game and is making nearly 48 percent of his shots as one of three Rams with double-figure scoring averages. Jahmere Tripp scores at an 11.0 clip while Japhet Medor is contributed 10.5, but Fordham is struggling to make shots, canning only 41.5 percent from the field. The Rams were picked for a 14th-place finish in the Atlantic 10 despite returning more scoring than any team in the league except for VCU. Third-year coach Keith Urgo thinks his team can defy low external expectations. "We're experienced and I think we're poised to have a tremendous year," he said. --Field Level MediaAlready buried under snow, Great Lakes region expected to see more stormy weather this weekDWTS' Brooks Nader Reacts to Sister Calling Her Out for Using Ozempic
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The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoECC) recently launched its sectoral strategy for 2024-2030, under the theme Together towards a sustainable environment for a better future, as part of the third National Development Strategy, which represents the final phase of the Qatar National Vision 2030, where environmental development has been made one of its four pillars. Comprising the pillars of environment, sustainability and adaptation to climate changes, research and innovation, digital transformation, governance, as well as sustainable institutional development, the strategy represents a pivotal step toward achieving Qatar’s aspirations based on a whole-of-government approach, pertaining to securing the sustainability of economic and social growth. The Qatar National Vision 2030 emphasised that the intended sustainability cannot be achieved without an overarching environmental vision toward striking a balance between the development needs and conservation of natural resources whether on land, sea or air. The director of the Arab Centre for Research and Policy Studies’s Economic Studies Unit, Dr Hazim Rahahleh, said that by launching the strategy for environmental protection and addressing climate challenges for 2024-30, Qatar reiterates its commitment and response to the evolving global issues and challenges, affirming that the strategy falls within the development and humanitarian role the country is performing at regional and global levels. Researcher in the fields of food security and social and economic development at Qatar University’s Gulf Studies Centre, Farah al-Qawasmi, stated that the strategy launched by the MoECC for 2024-30 underscores that Qatar has adopted a whole-of-government approach in addressing climate change challenges and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The targets of the MoECC strategy include reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2030, restoring 30% of environmentally impacted natural resources, protecting 30% of island and coastal areas, as well as preserving 17 species of endemic and endangered species. Associate professor of applied geography and geographic information systems (GIS) at Qatar University (QU), Dr Ammar Abulibdeh, said that Qatar, despite being an oil producer and one of the largest gas producers in the world, is striving to diversify energy sources and rely on renewable energy sources. Associate professor of GIS and remote sensing in the Applied Geography Programme at the QU, Dr Rana N Jawarneh, said that Qatar has many ambitious goals in terms of protecting the environment and adapting to climate challenges, which are evident in the many policies and plans made, as well as pioneering projects on the ground.Dejounte Murray is rejoining the Pelicans vs. Toronto and drawing inspiration from his mother
The problem wasn’t money for Democrats
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